


The locker notes

by shipsandglitter



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Ambi and Muffy if you squint, Buffy is a protective friend, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff, Happy ending bc they deserve it, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Idiots in Love, Kissing, M/M, Minor Angst, SO MUCH FLUFF (as always), TJ is a protective bf, Tyrus - Freeform, first ‘i love you’s’
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-07 10:27:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16852312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shipsandglitter/pseuds/shipsandglitter
Summary: Someone is leaving mean notes in Cyrus’ locker. Needless to say, TJ is not amused.





	The locker notes

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! I may have gotten a bit side tracked from another fic and I ended up writing this.
> 
> Although the mentions of homophobic language are very brief, I’d suggest being careful if you’re triggered by homophobia. There will be also a little bit of swearing in some parts.

There were a lot whispers at school. TJ didn’t think much of them at first - it was only natural that there would be a bit of buzz after people found out he was dating Cyrus. It was the same with most couples, and somehow it made everything seem more...normal.

He was insecure about a lot of things- but being gay for some reason had never been one of them. Despite some of the nonsense his parents often said around him, he had always viewed his feelings towards boys as relatively normal. He wasn’t surprised when his sister had come out as lesbian, and, despite admittedly being taken aback when Cyrus had come out to him, he hadn’t been overly surprised about that either.

This was why he didn’t mind comments about himself so much, but comments about Cyrus-  _they_ were an entirely different story. 

“How charming.” 

TJ raised an eyebrow and looked over Cyrus’ shoulder. He nearly gasped when he saw the note that the shorter boy was holding.

Buffy frowned. “What is it?”

“Someone went through the effort of writing ‘Fag’ on a piece of paper and putting it in my locker.”

“Excuse me?!” Andi yelped. “Who?”

“No name - obviously. I’ll just throw it out, it’s fine.” 

Buffy gritted her teeth and turned to TJ pointedly. 

“On it,” he muttered, turning away from the trio to face the bustling corridor.

“Alright listen up, kids!” 

He heard Cyrus sigh behind him. “TJ...”

“I  _will_ find out whoever left my boyfriend a note in his locker and when I do I’ll-“ Cyrus stepped forward and nudged him pointedly. “... _Gently_ knock your lights out.”

Buffy snorted. “Good save.”

Hushed chatter immediately started up as TJ draped an arm over the shorter boy’s shoulders and turned them around.

“Okay. Let’s go, muffin.” 

Buffy and Andi both smirked, while Cyrus just sighed in exasperation again.

“This is what I get for dating a scary athlete.”

TJ laughed. “I’m only scary when I need to be.”

“Yeah,” Andi agreed, “around Cyrus, you’re a lovesick puppy.”

“Okay, we’re going now!”  

Buffy and Andi exchanged an amused glance as the pair walked away.

 

~

 

“They’re staring at us,” TJ whispered.

Cyrus glanced around for a few moments, before nodding in agreement. 

The students at their lockers weren’t being subtle about their staring, and it was starting to become disconcerting.

“Okay, guys! Yes - we’re dating. No - you don’t need to stare. Let us live our lives in peace, please!” Cyrus told them, placing a protective hand on TJ’s back.

The taller boy tried to contain a giddy grin, but he failed miserably. Cyrus trying to be intimidating was far too cute, and he was very sure that his heart was about to burst.

Although Cyrus’ tone hadn’t been overly forceful, most of the students looked away pointedly and began chattering amongst themselves.

“Nice one.”

The boy gave him a beaming smile. “Thanks.”

 

~

 

At the end of the day, TJ watched intently for any signs of a note as Cyrus opened his locker.

“Do you not trust me to tell you?” he teased.

TJ looked away with a small, embarrassed smile. “Of course I do.” 

Cyrus grinned and pulled out his bag. His face fell when a piece of paper fluttered to the floor. “Good,” he sighed, “because there  _is_  another one.” 

TJ frowned and bent down to pick it up. After a few moments of looking at it, he forcefully crumpled it up.

“What does it say?”

“Nothing.” 

Cyrus slung his bag over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows at him. “Give it to me.”

He bit his lip and shook his head. “I’m gonna throw it away.” 

The boy took a few steps forward and placed a hand on TJ’s shoulder.

“Please?”

“Cyrus...”

He took the athlete’s hand and held it for a moment, before carefully prying the note  from his grasp and stepping back again. He spent a few seconds uncrumpling it.

“He should’ve broken up with you by now. He isn’t like you.” he read out slowly. 

TJ winced. “Cyrus...I-“

To his shock, the other boy just laughed. “I love that they’re implying you’re anything other than gay.”

TJ’s face immediately brightened at that, and an amused smile appeared on his lips. “I know right? It’s actually pretty offensive.”

Cyrus beamed at him as he shut his locker, and the pair walked out of school holding hands. The note didn’t come up again, but TJ still couldn’t help but feel worried. 

 

~

 

TJ knew something was up with his boyfriend the following day when he sat down at the cafeteria, looking completely crestfallen. 

“Muffin?” he offered, holding out the half he had been saving.

“No, I’m good.” 

He frowned slightly at that and shot Buffy a worried look, before wrapping an arm around the boy. He immediately dropped his arm when Cyrus flinched away, and watched he absentmindedly placed a hand in his jacket pocket.

TJ had a vague idea of what was wrong.

“What’s in your pocket?”

Cyrus’ eyes widened. “Nothing.”

“Cyrus...”

“I should probably go.”

“Without having lunch?”

“Without having lunch,” he confirmed, standing up from his seat and rushing out of the cafeteria.  

Buffy and Andi both watched him leave in bewilderment, before turning to TJ.

Andi raised an eyebrow. “Do you think-“ 

“Yeah, I do. I’ll go after him.” 

With that, he grabbed his muffin and ran out of the cafeteria, ignoring all of the curious looks he received. He rounded a few corners, then came to an abrupt stop when he noticed Cyrus a few metres away. He watched as the other boy slammed his locker shut and pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, shaking his head.

He looked ready to tear it up, so TJ hesitantly approached him. 

“Another one?” he asked gently.

Cyrus didn’t flinch this time, but he stepped back slightly when TJ held out a hand.

“Can I see it?” 

The boy lifted his head with a sigh and nodded, placing the folded piece of paper in TJ’s hand.

He raised an eyebrow in surprise as he began to unfold it, switching the muffin to his left hand. “It’s long,” he remarked. Cyrus just nodded again.

He read through the entire thing, his eyes flicking across the page as he did so. His expression didn’t change once, and it almost seemed  _more_  deadly to Cyrus that he was being so calm rather than blowing up completely. 

Although the urge to burn it was strong, TJ pocketed it as evidence and placed a gentle hand on Cyrus’ shoulder.

“None of that is true,” he said firmly. “All of it is nonsense. You’re not disgusting for liking me, neither of us are gross for dating and you sure as hell didn’t ‘turn me gay’, whatever that means.”

“I know...but do people  _think_ that?” he paused, and his voice was much smaller when he spoke again.  

“TJ. Do people hate us?” 

The athlete’s face softened. “Cyrus...this is one person. There are probably a few people who think like that, but there are way more people who don’t.”

Cyrus’ shoulders visibly relaxed at that and he stepped forward again, a hesitant smile tugging at his lips. “You’re right - I don’t know what got into me. I was already feeling bad about myself and then the note just...I don’t know. The other ones were easier to laugh at...”

TJ shook his head and pulled the other boy in, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek and resting his chin on the top of Cyrus’ head. “You’re amazing, Cy. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

They stood in silence for a few moments. TJ could feel the shorter boy smiling against his chest, and he couldn’t help but plant a kiss on his head because  _dammit, his boyfriend was far too cute._

He didn’t hear the loud footsteps behind him at first, but when he did, he whirled around instinctively.

“Oh,” he sighed after a moment, grinning, “Turner. You ready for practise tonight?”

The brown-haired boy smiled and nodded as he walked past. 

Cyrus tapped TJ’s shoulder, and he turned around again. 

“Can I have a bite of your muffin?”

“You can have the rest, seeing as you haven’t had lunch.” 

He took the half gratefully, and began tearing off a small piece just as Buffy and Andi approached them.

“Hey, Cyrus! Are you okay?” Andi asked.

Cyrus nodded, and shot TJ a small smile as the duo engulfed him in a hug. When Buffy pulled away, TJ leant over and mumbled a quiet “I’ll be right back.” She gave him a meaningful look and nodded.

He walked back to the cafeteria, clenching and unclenching his fists as he went. He eyes landed on the nearest empty table he could see as he practically stormed inside, stepping up onto it.

“Hey!” 

The chatter immediately died down, and most people’s heads turned to him.

“ _Clearly_ , someone didn’t get the message about leaving notes in my boyfriend’s locker.  _Don’t do it_  unless you want to deal with me. If anyone knows who it is, tell me. Have a nice day.” 

With that, he climbed back down and strode out of the cafeteria again.

 

~

 

TJ and Cyrus stopped at The Spoon that afternoon to escape the rain, which had started bucketing down the moment they stepped outside. 

Cyrus had a small umbrella in his bag, and they had briefly argued over whether he should protect himself or both of them. TJ eventually gave in after a 5 minute back and forth, and that was how they ended up sitting at The Spoon, both with one side of their body completely drenched. 

“Whatcha thinkin’ bout?”

Cyrus snapped himself out of his daze and looked at the boy sitting across from him. “Nothing.”

TJ raised an eyebrow at him. “Okay...should I order some baby taters?”

“Nah. I don’t feel like baby taters.”

“Alright! Something’s wrong. What is it?”

Cyrus looked down at the table, feeling slightly guilty. “Actually - you know what? I totally want some baby taters.”

“Nice try, underdog.” 

“Would you believe me if I said I was just cold?”

“No. But I have a spare jumper in my bag if you want it?”

Cyrus shook his head. “No - it’s fine. It’s just...” he sighed heavily. “That note-“

“Is that what’s upsetting you? I swear I will  _murder_  this person when I find out who they are-“ 

“I will absolutely not let you murder anyone at 14.”

“What about 15? or 16?”

“You’re impossible.”

“I know. But anyway - the note?”

Cyrus’ small smile fell. He sighed again and took TJ’s hand, playing with the athlete’s fingers while he thought about what to say.

“Will we have to deal with people like this forever? I’m not sure if I can do that, TJ.”

“It’ll get easier,” the other boy promised, “and there will always be people with common sense- like Buffy and Andi. Try to focus on the good for now, and I’ll focus on-“

“Committing homicide?”

TJ laughed. “Yeah. That.”  

They looked at each other for a moment, and TJ swore his heart was going to burst. He took in every detail of Cyrus’ face, from his lips (he was 99% sure that the boy was wearing his usual cherry lip balm) to his dark brown eyes. 

“I love you,” he blurted, before clapping a hand over his mouth, “sorry! I know it’s too soon-“

“TJ,” Cyrus interrupted. “I love you too.”

“ _Oh_.”

They went back to staring at eachother after that, with dopey smiles on their faces while they held hands over the table.

“Hey guys. Am I interrupting something here?”

They both looked up to find Marty standing above them, completely drenched with an amused grin on his lips.

“No.”

TJ rolled his eyes. “Yes.”

“ _TJ_.” 

“Fine.” 

Before Marty could move to sit down, TJ got up and slid into the seat next to Cyrus. The shorter boy rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t help a fond smile as Marty chuckled and sat down across from them.

“So. What’s up?” Cyrus asked.

“Well...Buffy mentioned that I should get to know you guys better and I saw you sitting in here so...”

TJ raised an eyebrow at him. “Right. So are you two dating or...?”

Cyrus playfully smacked on him on the arm, before turning to Marty with an apologetic smile. "That sounds great!”

Marty, if anything, looked even more amused. “Getting there.” he told TJ.

The athlete grinned. “Gotcha.” 

There was a momentary pause, then Marty began to frown slightly. “So I hear you’ve been getting notes in your locker?”

Cyrus winced. “How did you know?”

“I mean...your boyfriend kind of yelled at everyone. Twice.”

“ _Twice_?” Cyrus asked, shooting the athlete a pointed look.

TJ looked down at the table guiltily. “I may have had another word.”

“A very scary word,” Marty added.

To TJ’s surprise, Cyrus just smiled and leant into him, mumbling a quiet “You’re something else.”

For a few seconds after that, only the sounds of rain pattering against the window and chatter from the other tables were heard.

“...Also - Buffy told me what the notes said, and I just thought I’d tell you guys that it’s complete bullshit. Whoever that person is, they’re delusional.”

TJ was slightly taken aback, but he gave the boy a friendly smile. “Thanks. It means a lot."

The other boy nodded in agreement.

“No problem. Are you guys ordering anything?”

“Baby taters,” Cyrus said instantly, rolling his eyes at TJ’s amused smile.

“I’ll just steal from him,” he added.

TJ’s heart fluttered when the boy smiled and nodded - he knew well that he was pretty much the only one who could get away with sharing Cyrus’ baby taters. Marty seemed to realise this too, if the knowing grin on his lips was anything to go by.

“Great! I’ll go order for us.”

 

~

 

The following day at lunch, TJ stayed behind at his locker and waited until a majority of the students had left for the cafeteria. He hid around a corner, and sat down so that he could watch Cyrus’ locker and catch any potential culprits.

It had been about 5 minutes when Cyrus found him sitting there. 

“Hey there.”

TJ jumped and got to his feet instantly, before relaxing at the sight of his (very amused) boyfriend.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t come find you?”

He looked down at the floor with an embarrassed smile. “I don’t know,” he admitted

Cyrus grinned. “And were you really planning on staying here for all of lunch?”

“Yeah...but I have to catch this person somehow!"

The shorter boy stepped forward and handed him half of a muffin, before taking his free hand and guiding him towards the cafeteria. 

“Well, I’m not letting you waste time here when you  _could_ be spending it with me; your boyfriend.”

“You’re right,” TJ mumbled, unable to keep a smile from tugging at his lips, “as always.” 

Cyrus beamed at him for a few moments, before a slight frown appeared on his face. “You don’t have to worry about those notes, by the way. I can just keep throwing them away.”

TJ stopped walking immediately and placed his free hand on the other boy’s waist. “Cyrus - I care about you. A lot. I don’t want you to see horrible notes like that every other day.” 

They stared at each other for a moment. Cyrus’ eyes were sweeping over the athlete’s face, taking in every detail they could.

“Okay,” he breathed, smiling wide, “and just for the record, I care about you too. A lot.” 

TJ grinned at that, and they both slowly began to inch forward. At the last second, a loud voice interrupted them. 

“Hey guys!”

TJ stepped back instantly and leaned casually against the locker behind him. (Cyrus giggled slightly at this, which earnt him a playful glare.) 

He cleared his throat. “Um - hey Turner! What’s up?”

The boy smiled. “Not much.”

The pair watched as he kept walking down the corridor, turning at the first corner.  

TJ looked over at the other boy. “So...Cafeteria?”

Cyrus smiled and took his hand. “Cafeteria,” he confirmed. “Buffy and Andi are probably wondering about us.”

 

~

 

“Alright, great game today guys!” TJ called, high-fiving a couple of teammates as he walked through the change rooms.

“Wouldn’t have won without that last goal, captain!” David called back.

TJ smiled as he unlocked his locker. “Wouldn’t have got that goal without you guys!” 

The normal chatter started up as people showered and changed, with a few conversations about girls here and there that TJ didn’t feel inclined to join in on.

He knew that Cyrus was waiting outside with Buffy and Andi, so he made quick work of showering and changing. As he was stuffing his things into his bag, he felt a tap on his shoulder. 

David was standing next to him, an uncharacteristic frown on his face.

“David. What’s up man?” 

“Can we stay behind for a bit?”

TJ eyed the other players for a moment before nodding. “Yeah sure.”

He finished packing his things and slung his bag over his shoulder. When the final person had left, he turned to David and raised an eyebrow. “So, what’s going on?”

“You know those notes Cyrus is getting?”

“...Yeah?”

“I think I know who’s leaving them.”

“Really? Who?” 

“Someone on the team.”

“How do you know?”

David grimaced slightly as he pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. TJ’s heart immediately sank.

“This fell out of someone’s bag as they left. I don’t know who’s,” he explained hesitantly, passing the paper to TJ.

He skimmed the page for a few moments, and tried to push down his anger. “I can't believe how fucking long this is.” he muttered.

“Yeah, and it’s all garbage. I can’t tell you for sure who wrote it but some of the stuff a few guys say in here aren’t great.”

“...Aren’t great?” 

“Yeah. I don’t wanna accuse anyone...but try Turner.”

TJ’s heart sank even further.  _Turner of all people?_

“He’s...?”

“Kind of a dickhead about that stuff, yeah.”

TJ sighed. “It wouldn’t even be too bad if they were being left in my locker, but Cyrus is different - he overthinks a lot.”

David frowned and nodded. “If someone was leaving my girlfriend awful notes, I’d probably punch the hell out of them.”

“I want to. Trust me.”

“Well, even if it’s Turner, I’ll back you up. Have you tried telling Metcalf about this stuff?”

“Thanks - I appreciate it. I think I’m gonna have to, but I wanna talk to Turner first.” 

“Talk to Turner about what exactly?”

Both boys immediately whirled around. 

“Cyrus! My lovely boyfriend!”

The shorter boy folded his arms and tried (but failed) to raise an eyebrow at him. He eventually settled on raising both eyebrows.

“How about we go get some baby taters?” TJ offered. 

David chuckled and walked over to his locker to grab his things. 

Cyrus continued to stand there, his arms folded stubbornly and his eyebrows raised.

“Have I mentioned that you’re very cute?” TJ tried, walking forward with an innocent grin. Cyrus’ lips twitched at that, and he couldn’t help but smile.

Their staring contest continued after that, and it was only a few moments before the athlete conceded. “Let’s go and I’ll explain, okay?” 

The shorter boy grinned. “Okay.” 

TJ briefly turned to David with a grateful smile. “Thanks for telling me, man. I’ll see you around?”

“ Yeah dude, I’ll see you around,” he confirmed. “Let me know when you’re gonna...you know.”

“I will.”

With that, TJ wrapped an arm around his boyfriend and they walked out of the change rooms.

“So. I have a lead on this note-leaving person.” 

Cyrus giggled slightly. “A lead, huh?” 

“Yeah - this is an investigation now, as you know.”

“Of course. So who do you think it is?”

“Turner.” 

Cyrus’ eyes widened, and he let out a small sigh. “I  _knew_  that was why you wanted to talk to him.”

“Yeah...’talk’ to him.”

“ _TJ_ ,” he warned. “Just talking.”

The athlete raised his free arm in surrender. “Okay. We don’t even know if he’s our guy yet, so I guess I probably shouldn’t go in throwing punches.”

“You shouldn’t throw punches at all,” Cyrus reminded him. “If he’s the person that left them, then we go straight to Metcalf.”

The athlete pouted slightly at that ( _if Turner_ was _their guy, he definitely deserved a punch_ ), but nonetheless, he sighed in defeat. “Okay. I won’t lay a finger on him.” 

“Good.”

TJ couldn't resist the urge to boop Cyrus’ nose then, and he smiled softly when the shorter boy scrunched his face up and swatted his hand away. 

“I can’t believe  _you’re_ the sappy one in this relationship.”

“Oh, so it’s sappy to find my boyfriend cute now?”

“Yes! That’s very sappy.” 

“I guess i’m just sappy then.”

Cyrus smiled fondly. “Okay. Let’s stop saying sappy now.”

“Okay. I’ll stop saying sappy.”

“Good.”

TJ paused for a moment, before smiling mischievously. “Sa-“ 

The shorter boy (gently) grabbed his face and cut him off with a kiss.

 

~

 

TJ’s team ended up winning their game the following week.

His teammates were clapping him on the back, the hall was filled with deafening cheers and his coach was yelling over all the noise to congratulate them, but somehow, all he could focus on was Cyrus as the boy weaved through the crowds and rushed up to him.

TJ beamed at him. “Hey!” 

Immediately, he was engulfed by the shorter boy, who wrapped his arms around TJ’s neck and jumped up, allowing the athlete to catch him.

“You did so good! As always, obviously, but especially this time!” 

“Thanks, muffin.” 

They remained like that for a few moments, with goofy smiles on both of their faces, until TJ caught Turner’s eye over Cyrus’ shoulder. 

He looked downright  _furious_. 

The boy hadn’t been at school for a whole week and, curiously enough, the notes had stopped in that time.

TJ gently set his boyfriend down on the ground. Surprisingly, Cyrus didn’t stop him when he stormed up to Turner. 

“I know those notes were yours. If I _ever_ find another one, I’ll have you kicked off the team.”

The boy seemed slightly taken aback at the accusation, but he quickly composed himself. “I didn’t do a thing, Kippen.” he responded coolly.

“Right. Who left them for you, then?”

“No one. Because I didn’t fucking write them.” 

“Give it up. Cyrus hasn’t gotten a single one while you’ve been away and that fourth note fell out of  _your_ fucking bag in the changing rooms.”

By now, the crowds were rapidly filtering out of the hall, the coach had left, probably to talk to some teachers, and a few of his teammates had retreated to the changing rooms. Andi and Buffy were now standing next to Cyrus, which he had somehow missed. 

Turner still looked remarkably unfazed.

“That isn’t proof that I wrote them.”

“Uh - yeah it is.”

“So you’re gonna run to Metcalf now, saying it was me? Good luck with that."

“There's enough evidence."

“Is there?"

TJ hesitated for a moment. “Yeah...”

Turner smirked then, and TJ swore he could feel his blood boiling. 

“You’ve fucking lost it, Kippen. It’s sad.”

“Sure. Says the guy leaving bullshit letters in people’s lockers.”

“So what if I did? It’s all true, anyway. I’m sure the principal would  _agree_ if you showed them to him.”

“I’m very fucking sure he wouldn’t,” David cut in, moving to stand next to TJ. 

Cyrus, who usually would’ve been horrified by the amount of swearing that was going on, seemed completely frozen. Buffy looked furious, but she kept a supportive hand on his back and stayed out of it. Andi had both of her arms protectively wrapped around him. 

Turner rolled his eyes, but his smirk widened. “ _He_ ,” he nodded over TJ’s shoulder at Cyrus, “deserved every word of it.” 

In an instant, TJ’s restraint collapsed and he moved forward, connecting his fist with Turner’s jaw. 

He was able to reign in some strength at the last moment, so he knew there wouldn’t be any severe damage, but he couldn’t help but feel guilty when Turner stumbled back and cupped his jaw. 

_He had promised Cyrus he wouldn’t do that._

Turner fled from the hall then, and David clapped him on the back. “We’ll back you up, man.” 

“Thanks,” TJ sighed, shooting him a weak smile.

He slowly turned around.

Andi and Buffy both looked shocked - Buffy in particular looked slightly impressed. Most importantly, Cyrus just looked disappointed.

 _Ouch_.

TJ took a hesitant step forward. “I swear I wasn’t going to, but then he mentioned you and I got mad and I wasn’t thinking straight and-“ he paused for a moment, sighing heavily. “That doesn't matter. I'm just really sorry. I know I said that I wouldn’t-“

“ _TJ,”_ he interrupted, “it’s okay. I’m not even that upset that he got hurt- I just really don’t want you to be in trouble because of me.”

Relief flooded the athlete’s features, and he took another step forward. “It wasn’t because of you.” he said firmly. “It was because of him.”

Buffy nodded. “He’s right. None of this is your fault, Cyrus.” 

“Turner’s just a prick,” David added.

Before Cyrus could respond, Metcalf strode into the hall with a smug Turner in tow. TJ winced slightly at the loud echoing of their footsteps

“Mr. Kippen! You have some explaining to do.”

Well - he was more than happy to do that.

 

~

 

Metcalf listened to the group as they recounted everything that had happened over the past week and a half without interrupting.

When they were done, he nodded and calmly asked Buffy, Andi and David to leave the office and head to their lockers so he could speak to the other two. They exchanged a few confused glances, but hesitantly did as they were told.

TJ and Cyrus were sitting next to each other on a small leather couch, watching Metcalf intently as he cleared his throat and put his pen down.

“Just so you boys know, I’ve given Mr. Turner a suspension. They found some more notes in his locker.”

They both nodded.

“And I’m going to give TJ a detention for obvious reasons.” 

“Just a  _detention_?” he asked incredulously.

“Just a detention,” Metcalf confirmed. 

TJ opened his mouth to ask why, but Cyrus elbowed him lightly and mouthed ‘Don’t question it.’  

“I’d also like you boys to know that it gets better. Teenagers are cruel - and so are adults a lot of the time, but it gets easier to deal with stuff like this. Times are changing obviously, but there are always going to be people who don’t get it.” 

TJ and Cyrus exchanged a confused look. 

“How do you know that?” TJ asked.

“My husband and I were in a similar position when we were in school.” 

“Oh.  _Oh_. Whoa. We uh - we...didn’t know! Thank you, Principal Metcalf,” Cyrus stuttered.

“Yeah. That’s awesome!”

“No problem, boys,” he paused to gesture to the door, “now get out of my office.”

The pair stood up and exchanged amazed smiles as they walked out.

“That was interesting,” TJ remarked.

“Definitely. But hey - you only got one detention!”

“Yeah! I don’t think I’ve ever gotten so lucky in my life.” 

Cyrus smiled fondly and leant into TJ as they walked, allowing the other boy to wrap an arm around him. They headed to their lockers from there.

“Celebratory milkshakes?”

“Always.”

 

~

 

_Random bonus scene:_

 

TJ watched as Buffy approached, a smirk on her lips.

“You seem to be in a bit of a situation here.”

“He’s too cute! I can’t wake him up!”

Buffy snorted and sat down next to him on the bench. 

It was late afternoon and the group were all at the park (Asides from Jonah, who had a guitar lesson.) Somehow, TJ had ended up sitting on the bench with a tired Cyrus on his lap.

He smiled lovingly and ran a careful hand through his boyfriend’s hair. “I’ll just wake him up when we leave.” 

They sat in silence for a moment and watched as Amber and Andi chased each other around the park, giggling madly.

TJ smiled. “I’m guessing you felt like a third wheel, huh?”

“Big time. Their flirting is unbelievable.”

“Speaking of flirting, how’s Marty?”

“Good. Wait - no. I’m  _not_ talking about this with you.”

TJ chuckled. “Fine then.”

Another brief silence fell.

“I can’t believe Metcalf has a husband,” Buffy remarked.

“I wasn’t that surprised. I got a bit of a vibe from him.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah! Gays can detect other gays."

Buffy snorted. “I don’t think so.”

“It’s true! Look it up.”

“You thought Andi was straight.”

“...Gays can  _usually_ detect other gays.”

“What on earth are you guys talking about?” Cyrus mumbled, rubbing his eyes tiredly and slowly sitting upright.

Buffy smirked. “Sleeping beauty has awoken!” 

“Sleeping beauty didn’t  _want_ to be awoken, but sleeping beauty is a light sleeper and two annoying people were having a conversation right by his head,” Cyrus grumbled.

“Well, you’re kind of using me as a chair, muffin.” 

Cyrus just groaned and buried his face in TJ’s chest. 

“God, you’re cute,” TJ mumbled, pressing a soft kiss to the boy’s head.

“Great. Now I’m the  _fifth_ wheel!”  

Cyrus looked up with an apologetic smile and carefully stood up. He moved over to Buffy and sat down on her lap.

“Hey! Now  _I’m_ the fifth wheel.” TJ complained.

Buffy shrugged. “Sorry, he’s mine now.” 

“First, you steal the basketball from me during practise, then you steal my man. How do you sleep at night?”

Buffy smirked at him. “Very soundly.” 

The athlete gasped.

Cyrus smiled fondly at the exchange, before reaching out and petting his boyfriend’s hair. “I love you.”

TJ grinned. “I love you too.” 


End file.
